AKRON, Ohio, April 3, 2013 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A woman who underwent a failed abortion after being told by doctors that continuing her pregnancy would endanger her life is suing the abortion clinic, which she described as a “slaughterhouse,” following the birth of the baby girl she had intended to have killed.

Ariel Knights, a dental technician from Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, launched the malpractice lawsuit against Akron Women’s Medical Group and two doctors, alleging they failed to perform the abortion they told her was successful, which led to the birth of her daughter.

She claims her decision to abort her daughter was based on the advice of doctors who told her she has uterus didelphys, a genetic condition that results in a double uterus with individual cervices, which put her pregnancy and her life at risk. Knights has a pre-school aged son.

"It was a decision I made because my life was in danger," she told the Akron Beacon Journal. "I was put in jeopardy. And I have a son that I am supposed to be taking care of.”

On the morning of her abortion appointment in March 2012, Knights described feeling that she and the women waiting in the Akron Women’s Medical Group clinic were treated like cattle.

“Every seat was full. People were standing,” she said. “It was pretty much like a slaughterhouse; it was like OK, next, next.”

Following the abortion she claims she heard the doctor say, "All right, everything’s good and clear, everything went well."

In constant pain in the days afterward, Knights went to hospital. She was seen by an obstetrician who performed an ultrasound, and then told her she was still pregnant

“… [T]he look on [the doctor’s] face when he found out, he was like, ‘Oh my goodness, honey, you’re still pregnant,’ ” Knights said. “My fiancé and I, we both were kind of in shock.”

Knights said she contacted the Akron abortion clinic and was told to go to their Cleveland-area office. Still intent on aborting her child, she chose instead to contact another abortion clinic, which she claims declined to see her because of “somebody else’s mistake.”

The couple then decided to continue the pregnancy with the result that their daughter, whom they named Lillian “Lily” Pearl and call their "miracle baby," was born on September 20 last year.

The couple have posted photos and videos of their “precious angel” on their Twitter page, and although they say they adore their new baby, filed the lawsuit on March 4 seeking at least $25,000 in compensatory damages for pain, suffering, and emotional distress that Knights said the failed abortion caused her.

Knights said the irony of suing the clinic for failing to abort the child she herself wanted destroyed is apparent to her.

“That’s a sore subject to think about,” she said. “I mean, it’s just hard, thinking she’s here and thinking, if they would have done their job. … It’s just something I don’t like to think about.”

Knight’s attorney, James J. Gutbrod, who the Beacon Journal describes as being staunchly pro-life, said the lawsuit is a malpractice claim that alleges the clinic and the abortionists failed to follow an acceptable standard of care.

“From Ariel’s description, you can see how poorly the clinic is run and how different it is from any other medical procedure that’s done in our country,” Gutbrod said. “The way they do things is horrendous.”

According to court documents filed by Akron Women’s Medical Group, the clinic and doctors deny any negligence and are challenging the lawsuit, claiming that as at least some of the allegations have passed the statute of limitations, the case should be dismissed.

The case has been assigned to Judge Amy Corrigall Jones of the Summit County Common Pleas Court.